Elsa Laubach Jemne (1887–1974) was an American landscape painter, portraitist, muralist and illustrator born in St. Paul, Minnesota. She attended the St. Paul Institute before continuing her art studies at the

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryl ...

in Philadelphia. Jemne returned to the Midwest, where she made most of her art. She completed several murals in Minnesota and Wisconsin on commission for the

Section of Painting and Sculpture The Treasury Section of Painting and Sculpture was a New Deal art project established on October 16, 1934, and administered by the Procurement Division of the United States Department of the Treasury. Commonly known as the Section, it was rena ...

, which were created in public buildings such as post offices and courthouses. She also had works in local schools and similar institutions, and illustrated several books, including two by Norwegian writer

Marie Hamsun Marie Hamsun (born Marie Andersen) (19 November 1881 – 4 August 1969) was a Norwegian actress and writer. Biography Marie Andersen was born in Elverum, Hedmark, Norway. She was the eldest child in an affluent family. In 1897 the family moved t ...

translated into English.

Education

Jemne was a student of

Violet Oakley Violet Oakley (June 10, 1874 – February 25, 1961) was an American artist. She was the first American woman to receive a public mural commission. During the first quarter of the twentieth century, she was renowned as a pathbreaker in mural deco ...

Cecilia Beaux Eliza Cecilia Beaux (May 1, 1855 – September 17, 1942) was an American society portraitist, whose subjects included First Lady Edith Roosevelt, Admiral Sir David Beatty and Georges Clemenceau. Trained in Philadelphia, she went on to study in ...

Daniel Garber Daniel Garber (April 11, 1880 – July 5, 1958) was an American Impressionist landscape painter and member of the art colony at New Hope, Pennsylvania. He is best known today for his large impressionist scenes of the New Hope area, in which he o ...

Emil Carlsen Soren Emil Carlsen (October 19, 1853 – January 2, 1932, New York City, U.S.) was an American Impressionist painter who emigrated to the United States from Denmark. He became known for his still lifes. Later in his career, Carlsen expanded his r ...

, and Joseph Pearson.McGlauflin, ed., ''’Who’s Who in American Art 1938–1939'', vol.2, The American Federation of Arts, Washington D.C., 1937 She was awarded the

Cresson Traveling Scholarship The Cresson Traveling Scholarship, also known as the William Emlen Cresson Memorial Traveling Scholarship, is a two-year scholarship for foreign travel and/or study awarded annually to art students at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Phi ...

in both 1914 and 1915. While still a student, Jemne made commercial art, which she found "stupid, uncongenial, & maddening in its monotony."

Life

Elsa Jemne became an advocate for art and culture in her home state of Minnesota in the early 20th century during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Not interested in commercial art, she traveled by bus throughout what is known as "the Iron Range of Northern Minnesota." She was commissioned to paint several murals depicting locally and regionally important themes. She completed six murals under the auspices of the

, which commissioned works for United States post offices and courthouses. She completed ''Minnesota'', an allegorical depiction of her home state, in 1937, in a style that reveals the influence of both Oakey and

Diego Rivera Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez, known as Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957), was a prominent Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the ...

on her work. She had married architect Magnus Jemne, with whom she sometimes collaborated. One of their collaborations was the

Art Moderne Streamline Moderne is an international style of Art Deco architecture and design that emerged in the 1930s. Inspired by aerodynamic design, it emphasized curving forms, long horizontal lines, and sometimes nautical elements. In industrial design ...

-style Saint Paul Women's City Club. Elsa Laubach Jemne died in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1974.

Work

* Her New Deal artworks include pieces in the following buildings: **

Hutchinson, Minnesota Hutchinson is the largest city in McLeod County, Minnesota, McLeod County, Minnesota, United States. It lies along the South Fork of the Crow River (Minnesota), Crow River. The population was 14,599 at the 2010 United States Census, 2020 census. ...

post office, mural titled ''The Hutchinson Singers'', completed in 1942, egg tempera on plaster **

Ely, Minnesota Ely ( ) is a city in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,268 at the 2020 census. Located on the Vermilion iron range, Ely once had several iron ore mines. It is an entry point for campers and canoers into the Bou ...

post office, two tempera-on-plaster murals titled
Iron-Ore Mines
' an
''Wilderness''
**

Ladysmith, Wisconsin Ladysmith is a city and the county seat of Rusk County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,414 at the 2010 census. History The Ojibwe who travelled the Flambeau River called the area that would become Ladysmith ''Gakaabikijiwanan'' ...

post office, tempera on plaster mural title
of the Land''
completed in 1938; since painted over **

Lake Geneva, Wisconsin Lake Geneva is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located in Walworth County and situated on Geneva Lake, it is home to an estimated 8,105 people as of 2019, up from 7,651 at the 2010 census. It is located about 40 miles southwest of Milwa ...

post office, oil on canvas mural titled ''Winter Landscape'', completed in 1940 **

Stearns County Stearns County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,292. Its county seat and largest city is St. Cloud. The county was founded in 1855. It was originally named for Isaac Ingalls Stevens, the ...

Courthouse in

St. Cloud, Minnesota St. Cloud is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the largest population center in the state's central region. The population was 68,881 at the 2020 census, making it Minnesota's 12th-largest city. St. Cloud is the county seat of Stear ...

Minneapolis Armory The Minneapolis Armory is a historic event center and former National Guard armory located in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Built by the Public Works Administration in 1936, the building was occupied by several Army and Naval Mili ...

, headquarters for

Minnesota National Guard The Minnesota National Guard is a state-based military force of more than 13,000 soldiers and airmen, serving in 61 communities across the state. Operated in the U.S. state of Minnesota, it is reserve component of the National Guard. The Cons ...

, where she painted alongside

Lucia Wiley Lucia Wiley (April 14, 1906–August 20, 1998) was a noted New Deal muralist and painter born and raised in Tillamook, Oregon. Lucia Wiley was the oldest of six children and always found herself interested in art, even at a young age. In 1923 ...

, also from that state In addition, Jemne had other commissions: * Central High School, Minneapolis * Leamy House,

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

* Nurses Home, St. Luke’s Hospital * Northern Shores Power Company building * Saint Paul Women's City Club, St. Paul, murals and terrazzo floors * Community House,

Brandon, Minnesota Brandon is a city in Douglas County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 501 at the 2020 census. History The village of Brandon was incorporated on November 22, 1881. The current town site was laid out when the railroad was being buil ...

* She illustrated a number of books: ** '' Rudi Finds a Way'', by Yolanda Foldes ** '' A Norwegian Family'', by

and translated by Maida Castelhun Darnton ** '' A Norwegian Farm'' by

; abridged and translated by Maida Castelhun Darnton ** '' We of Frabo Stand'' by Loring MacKaye

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jemne:Elsa 1880s births 1974 deaths 20th-century American women artists American muralists 20th-century American painters American women painters Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts alumni Painters from Minnesota Section of Painting and Sculpture artists Artists from Saint Paul, Minnesota Women muralists